Every word from Mikel Arteta's pre-Forest presser

After a two-week gap to recharge, Mikel Arteta was back in front of the cameras at the Sobha Realty Training Centre on Friday afternoon to chat about our game against Nottingham Forest.

The boss spoke about a number of current issues, including injuries, our current form, reaching 250 games as our boss and even his idol Rafael Nada's retirement from tennis.

Here is everything he had to say:

on how we stand with injuries after the international break:
There’s been some positives, some others not so. Trossard seems to be OK, he trained this morning and seems to be feeling good. We will assess everything with the doctor right now, as he was able to be part of that session, so that's good.

on how Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice are doing:
They have had their first partial session today, so very good as well.  

on Ben White:
Ben is going to be out for months. It’s been different kind of struggles, it’s never been the same thing, but we had to make a decision in the last few weeks, unfortunately. We know that Ben is going to push every boundary but it got to a point where we had to protect the player and we decided to do the surgery. He agreed with that, and obviously it will keep him out for a few months. We have to see how he reacts post-surgery, I don't expect him to be out for half a season or year but I cannot tell you exactly [how long].

on how Riccardo Calafiori is doing:
Ricci trained today, so his rehab is going really well. He was able to do certain things last week with the physios, and trained on the pitch this week with us and today, so he will be in the squad.

on Kieran Tierney and Takehiro Tomiyasu:
Kieran - not yet. He had a couple of sessions with the team but is not ready yet to be with the team, and Tomiyasu is going to be out as well for a bit.

on the mood in the camp over the past couple of weeks:
I think about everything that we’ve done. Is the reason that we haven’t won games because the opponent has been superior to us? The clear answer is no. Should we have won more of those games? The answer is yes. Do I like what our team is doing? The answer is yes, but we have to improve certain things, especially how we have defended attacking the box. 

Overall I can think of a lot of things but I need to understand how the players are, and the only way to do that other than communicating on the phone is when they come back, and the energy of the staff and players yesterday was unbelievable. That's the joy of being with these guys on this journey. They love being here, they love to be back with us and that brings the energy up straight away, there’s not much that I need to do. It’s always good to paint the picture and make sure that we’re on the right track.

on Pep Guardiola signing a new contract at Manchester City:
If it is what he really wants, and I’m sure it is, I congratulate him - I already did it. I’m happy for him because I want the best for him.  

on if it’s good for our title ambitions:
We can only do what is up to us and we have to be at our very best to try to achieve what we want. But the others can too, it is not our decision.  

on how much he’s enjoyed his first 250 games as our manager:
I’m extremely grateful, very happy, and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it because of the people that I work with every single day and because I understand how lucky I am to be sitting where I am, and you always want more. I feel a huge pride to see the people that work in our organisation and how they feel about the club right now, and what we transmit as a football club and as a team. But it is about winning and the end, I want more, I want big trophies and we are on that journey.

on potentially managing 250 more:
It is about energy and what I love doing, for sure.

on Nottingham Forest’s form:
They’ve been really good, really consistent. They’ve been tough against the best opposition especially, so big credit to Nuno [Espirito Santo] and the coaching staff for what they’re doing. They’re very clear with their intentions on how they manage to take the game the way they want. I’m really impressed with how they’ve done.

on us being unbeaten at home:
We love playing at the Emirates, we know that we have a unique atmosphere with our supporters there. Again, the way I saw the team the last 48 hours, I’m confident that tomorrow we will go all out to try and win the game.

on his greatest achievement in his 250 games:
Bringing the club together, 100%. Lifting the spirit and giving a very clear DNA to the football club and setting it right again to be representing this club and this football shirt, from the players to everybody who works at the club in the way that is expected at this level.

on whether his aim now is to add trophies:
That is not the only one, you have to maintain a lot of the things that you do. Sometimes you achieve them but they can drop very quickly so it’s maintaining them and that’s work you have to do consistently every single day. But now, it’s about winning and that’s the next step for sure.

on whether he expected Guardiola to sign a new deal:
I have no clue to be fair, and he’s done that in the past as well at Barcelona it was every year then at Bayern when I was there [at Manchester City] it was very similar. It’s his decision and he seems very happy at the club as well, so congratulations.

on the significance of tomorrow and the next six weeks:
It’s about building momentum, getting results and getting back-to-back wins. That would again create the energy that we need with all of the good things that we are doing.

on getting to 250 games in his first job:
It could have been much shorter! Especially in the world that we live right now, I really appreciate it. My first word is gratitude, it’s an honour to do the job that I do, when I do it, with who and that’s why I love what I do. It’s no coincidence, I feel really lucky and hopefully we can continue.

on the last two months:
I know from my insides when I plan the season and I have a start and finish, it’s a journey.  We all go travelling on the bus together. It's going to be bumpy, there’s going to be bad weather, things are going happen. My thing is how I'm going to navigate, how I'm going to make the others navigate in the midst of all that, because it's going to happen. It's guaranteed that it's going to happen unless we become invincible and win every game, and then, fine we didn't have to go through it. But in the way that I predicted the season, it was going to happen. [Was I expecting] as many things that have happened? No. But I love how the team reacts and how the club reacts when there are difficulties.

on losing White for a couple of months: 
It is a challenge. It was something that we didn't expect at all because, when we talk about consistency and availability in the defensive line, Ben was probably the best with Gabi and Wilo. So we’ll miss him but that’s it. We’re going to have to find alternatives, that's it.  But there are a lot of positives as well, because Declan is back, Bukayo is back. Jurrien is in a good place because he could not play the last game. Leo came back in a good place, Riccy’s back after missing five or six weeks. That’s a lot of players and that’s great news.

on whether Bukayo and Declan are in a better position having not played with England:
I prefer it when players are in the routine, in the rhythm to play. They couldn't do it because they were injured, so, we have tried to facilitate everything that we could for them to be in the best condition for tomorrow.

on trying to avoid further injuries:
Don’t even talk about it, [I’d like] some normality, not everything that has happened lately. But again, it's like everything: there is a lot to learn from those experiences. For yourself and how you can start to look constantly and get frustrated, and you have to get out of that - no time for excuses or fighting for something else. The team hasn't reacted in that way, and I really love the experience of going through something difficult with them, because so many cases were quite tough emotionally to deal with.

on whether he sees similarities to last season which improved after a trip to Dubai:
It was not because Dubai - that would be too simple. It's because I'm looking back at all the games, I look at all of the positions in the Premier League and what they are doing, just to understand the context that we’re in and how good we are in relation to the opposition. I am very confident that when this team finds a bit of consistency and a bit of normality, it’s going to come.

on what is the key to finding consistency:
Availability.

on whether there is any margin for error left:
It’s much smaller, obviously. When you see the consistency in terms of results that Liverpool are having - making exceptional improvements and results. But we are there. We have played against them, and we have seen where we are in relation to them, so that gives me a lot of confidence. 

on Rafael Nadal’s retirement:
I’m just proud of how he has represented the country and his sport. I think as an athlete, for everybody - whether you’re a tennis fan or not a tennis fan - the way he acts, the way he behaves, the way he wins, and especially the way he's lost, the way he has dealt with the difficulties in life, is just an inspiration. For me, he’s a very special role model, because I know him and the people around him. How he had to adjust his career, adapt to it, and what he has achieved, I think he's phenomenal. Like Roger [Federer], I think he will be there as one of the best forever in the sport.

on his recent visit to the US to meet our owners:
It’s always really positive to spend time together. We had time to talk about the [transfer] windows, but as well about the club, how we’re feeling about what we’re doing and how we’re feeling about where we’re going to take the club and the direction, and Edu. It’s a lot of topics there, but again it’s a joy to spend time with them because there’s a lot to learn. They have so much experience in sport because you feel the ambition, especially when you are there. They are very far away, but how closely they live every day with us and what we want to achieve together, it feels great.

on assistant sporting director Jason Ayto stepping up:
He’s very good, Jason and all the team. Edu and I probably got a lot of praise, but the work behind that is done by these guys. The ambition is phenomenal, it’s not easy to wake up one day and you’re having to move to a different office and do a different job like he was for the team, but again the speed of how people react and how they are willing to say: “OK, that’s it, that’s the situation, let’s move forward.” With that ambition and with that determination and enthusiasm, that’s something great.

on whether there’s a timeframe for Tomiyasu’s return:
No. He’s going to be away now for a few weeks for him to continue with his training and to change his environment a little bit because it’s been really tough for him as you can imagine. He’s one of the guys where the only thing he wants to do is to work 24 hours to get better and he feels terrible when he’s not fit, so it’s a real shame. We’re going to give him the best opportunity to try and unlock something to help him to have him back as quickly as possible, but I think we need to be patient.

on whether he wants to win a Premier League title by finishing above Guardiola:
We certainly have a lot of the best managers in the world in this league and that’s enough. That’s the challenge, that’s the level. We know the level and how the opposition prepares and the things they do to try to beat you, so it’s great to be in this environment trying to improve yourself and win.

on Martin Odegaard’s condition:
He played really well [against Chelsea] and that had consequences because after such a long time not playing he needed time to recover. The ankle reacted and other areas of the body with so much load going into it. It wasn’t ideal, but he’s been OK, the last day and a half he’s trained with the team and he’s feeling good, so that’s really positive.

on what we missed during Odegaard’s absence:
He couldn’t play but we did a lot of things and in some games it worked especially, but Martin brings everybody together. He has this capacity to win without the ball, his charisma, his leadership, that’s why he’s the captain. He has the intelligence to make everybody better and to make everybody click. That’s a unique quality he has.

on whether we missed Odegaard in the dressing room:
He’s been really on it in that sense, but when you step in there and you have to go through certain moments on the field, having him makes life easier. But that doesn’t mean other players don’t do it, or can’t do it in a different way.